


melting ice statues

by moonflovers



Category: Haikyuu!!, ハイパープロジェクション演劇「ハイキュー!!」| Hyper Projection Play "Haikyuu!!" RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, Guilt, Haikyuu Secret Santa 2018, Ice Skating, M/M, Pining, figure skating, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 02:00:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17132930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moonflovers/pseuds/moonflovers
Summary: Akaashi works at an ice rink. Bokuto wants to be a pro ice skater. And both of themhatethe cold.





	melting ice statues

**Author's Note:**

> This is a bit late but I hope you like it Tas! I offer my humble words as a gift uwu

No matter what time of year it is, if you happen to stumble across Akaashi Keiji, you will definitely see him wearing a sweater or jacket. If he’s not wearing one, you’ll see it hanging on his arm or tied around his waist. Even during the summer months, he’s never not seen with an article of clothing that will help him keep warm.

It’s not because he wants to be stylish but because ultimately, he gets cold really easily.

So why does Keiji work in a place where it’s always cold? Well for one, the ice rink is situated near his apartment and it pays well enough to keep him from going broke because of all the volleyball equipment he has to replace. The next reason is because while Keiji absolutely loathes the cold with every fibre in his being, he also loves the feeling of warmth when it’s cold.

It’s also a small reminder of what could have been.

Perhaps he’s a masochist at heart.

“Akaashi-kun, is it really okay for you to take over my shift?” Hana asks him as she wraps her scarf around her neck loosely, like she’s ready to take it off if Keiji changes his mind.

Keiji smiles at the older girl and leans on the cold table top. “It’s fine Hana-san. I don’t mind getting paid more,” he teases gently making Hana laugh a bit. “Besides, your siblings need you right now.”

“I’m really sorry! I’ll make sure to make it up to you sometime,” Hana bows a bit before running off, waving her hand as she disappears from the glass doors of the ice rink. Keiji raises his hand out of habit before slumping on the seat of the reception area and exhaling on his cold hands and rubbing them together to generate heat.

_Well, it’s fine. I really do need money since it’s Christmas season_. Keiji thinks, wrapping the jacket around his body tighter. _I don’t even know why we celebrate Christmas. We’re not even Christian. Well whatever, I shouldn’t complain since I can eat a lot._

The ice rink Keiji works at is a small one that not a lot of people go to. Still, it generates enough profit that they don’t go bankrupt due to the support from the customers who frequent there regularly. The building can be described as old from the passage of time but it’s well maintained that it doesn’t fall into a state of disrepair. It’s been standing for 21 years, a family business to a former pro-skater pair couple. Of course, not much people know that fact, keeping it away from the spotlight.

_“Oh, Keiji-kun! Your mind focuses too much on the money,” Himi Reina told him, as she leaned on to her husband, Himi Hideyoshi. “The seclusion makes this place more special for us. People go here because they_ like _it, not because of the_ prestige _.”_

_Keiji looked at his parents best friend with a frown on his face. “You’re only saying that because you already have loads of money from coaching the newer skaters, right Oba-san?” He asked, already knowing the answer._

_“Well, of course, there’s that but when you’re stripped of your privacy, you learn to love quiet places,” she said, smiling at the ice rink, a distant look in her eyes._

_“We’re not followed by paparazzi like before anymore though,” Himi Hideyoshi told his wife who turned at him with a scowl._

_“Don’t ruin the moment, Yoshi!”_

Keiji smiles fondly at the memory but no less warmer than before. Desperate for warmth, he bends over to get his blue scarf that’s hidden inside his bag. He takes it out and sighs in relief when he feels the material hasn’t gone cold yet- just a neutral temperature that isn’t cold nor hot. He sits up straight and to his surprise, he comes face to face with a man with weirdly coloured hair that brushes his eyes.

“Ah, I’m sorry!” The man straightens up, revealing his true height. He seems to be a bit older than Keiji himself by a year or two. “How much is the seasonal pass here?”

“We don’t offer seasonal passes. It’s one thousand yen per day though,” Keiji explains to the obviously new customer. “And if you’re going to bring a kid, it’s five hundred yen.”

The man looks up at the ceiling, pouting as he seems to ponder over this. “Well, it’s near so I guess that'll do.” The man looks back at Keiji, giving him a wide smile while closing his eyes. Okay, one pass please!”

_I am_ gay. “Okay. Do you need gloves and skates too?” He asks as he types a code on the computer, flashing the total on it. The place may be old but that doesn’t mean it’s not updated on technology.

“It’s fine! I got my own,” the man raises the bag he was apparently carrying into sight then lowers it. He hands Keiji 1000 yen and in return, he hands him his pass. The bubbly man thanks him before walking off to the lockers.

The next four hours are boring. A group of friends rent out skates and gloves while a couple comes in with gloves but no skates. An old man comes in with his grandchildren, the girl looking excited at the prospect of skating while her brother trails behind with uncertainty.

His job is easy. All he has to do is answer the questions of prospective customers and hand skates and gloves to them. Sure, he has to rearrange the skates when they get messy and help customers out when they don’t know their shoe size for figure skates or hockey skates. And on occasion, he has to mop the floor if it gets wet or if an accident occurs. The other employees take care of general maintenance of the rink itself and all of them know first aid if someone gets hurt on the ice.

“Oi! Akaashi!”

Keiji turns around to see Maria sticking her head out from the locker area with a smile on her face. “Yes, Maria-san?” He asks, surprised at her appearance.

“Want to go to the rink? There’s this amazing kid there doing some routine,” she says, a glint of mischief present in her eyes. “I can take over.”

The image of the man springs into his mind and Keiji instinctively grimaces. “Okay.” He says.

“You don’t look happy about it though,” Maria says, slinking over to the reception. “Liven up a little, Akaashi!”

Keiji takes a second, larger jacket from his bag and stands up. "Yeah, yeah. Don’t scare anyone off,” he tells her. He can hear her swear at him in Russian as he walks away from her but he knows she doesn’t mean it.

He goes to his personal locker and takes the lock off. In it are his own personal skates and a pair of navy blue gloves. He takes them out and sits down on the bench so he can put them on. After fastening his skates properly, he heads to the rink where he can spot the students in one corner, holding onto the rails as they laugh good-naturedly while a lone girl from their group skates slowly beside them, seemingly giving instructions to her friends. In a spot not too far from the rails are the couple, skating with ease but not exactly gracefully either. The young girl from earlier seems to practice skating backwards while her brother seems to be instructed by their grandfather.

And in the middle is the bright man, head held high with his bangs clipped away from his eyes. Keiji watches his chest rise up and down before steadying. Keiji steps into the ice rink to get a better view and sees that the man’s eyes are closed. Suddenly, he opens them, full of determination and passion. The man steps forward slowly with his right foot, then pushes off with his left foot, beginning his routine. He moves to the edges of the rink but always avoids the others, as if making sure not to disrupt their fun. Keiji can’t help but feel mesmerised at the man’s footwork and even more awed at the way he moves, like water especially with how big his muscles seem to be.

_Is he aiming to be a pro?_ Keiji thinks as the routine comes to an end. Unexpectedly, the man catches his gaze and Keiji can feel his face turn red.

“Hey, hey, hey cashier boy!”

_Oh my gods, he’s talking to me. Holy shit. Well, at least I feel warmer now._ Keiji thinks as he feels the desire for the earth to swallow him whole as the gorgeous man skates over to him.

“Did you like my routine? I don’t know if I got the timing right since I didn’t bring the music for it but I didn’t flub any of the jumps this time! I hope that I get it right again when the coach is here!” The man excitedly says.

“It was nice. Are you planning to go pro?” Keiji asks, already sure of the answer but at the same time, wants an excuse to talk to the hot and talented man. It’s not planned but both of them start skating, nothing special, just gliding over the ice so that they don’t stay in one place. Somewhere in the back of Keiji’s mind, he takes note of how easy it is to talk to the talented skater.

“Yeah! One day, I’ll represent Japan for the Olympics and I’ll beat everyone there!” The man pauses and looks at Keiji, revealing golden eyes that seem to hold an entire galaxy. “My name is Bokuto Koutarou and I’m a film student.”

“Ah. I’m Akaashi Keiji.” Keiji keeps his voice low and his face impassive as he feels his heart beat furiously in his chest. “I’m a third year in high school. I don’t mean to offend but don’t people who want to go pro not go to college?”

“It’s not really a college. More like a six month long seminar where I can meet people. But I do get a degree or certificate out of it. Anyways, it’s just a backup thing in case I get injured.” Bokuto explains. “And even then, I can always go to a real college if that happens.”

“I see,” Keiji splits from Bokuto so they don’t bump into the couple and he seamlessly moves back to the older man’s side, putting his hands at his back.

“You skate seriously too, huh?

“I used to but not anymore,” Keiji tells him and leaves it at that. There’s no need to bring up nasty memories and have someone pity him.

Luckily, Bokuto doesn’t push and comes to a halt. He raises his arm and pushes his sleeve back to reveal a silver watch.

“Well, I gotta go. I’ll see you around!” Bokuto tells him, ready to skate away. But he doesn’t and gives Keiji a strange look. “You going back to the register or are you gonna skate more?”

Not surprisingly, Keiji can feel his face combust as his heart feels as though it will escape from his chest. “Ah, no. I’ll skate a bit more.” He says. _Besides, it’s been so long since I’ve skated._

The older man gives him an indulgent smile, sending butterflies soaring in his stomach. “Sure, Akashi-kun. I’ll be back!”

“It’s Akaashi. Goodbye, Bokuto-san.”

Bokuto only laughs in response and Keiji wonders if he did it on purpose. His eyes linger on the figure of the muscular man before focusing on the vast expanse of ice in front of him. For the first time, he notices how cold it is and he instinctively pulls his jacket so that it clings to him better- not like it helps because it’s _so fucking cold._

_It’s almost been a year since I skated._ Keiji pushes himself forward and manoeuvres himself to the centre of the rink. His hands shake but he ignores them and clenches them into a fist. _Can I still do it? Can I still skate?_

The ghost of an old memory surfaces from the depths of his mind and Keiji can almost hear the music rising to a perfect crescendo as he poses like a man, ready to steal the breath of a young woman. In his mind, the tenth note vibrates through the ice rink and he takes off. He hasn’t skated in almost a year but he still remembers when to jump, how many steps he has to pull off and where to pause. But it feels different from the last time he performed it. It feels brighter, full of life.

_Maybe… maybe I can skate again._

+

Keiji doesn’t see him for two weeks. He doesn’t really expect him to come back or even remember him if he comes back but he also secretly hopes to him again. But he has to be thankful. Something about Bokuto’s routine sparked something in him again. He wants to skate again even after everything.

”Akaashi! You really skating again?” Maria asks him, sliding her arms across the counter.

Keiji rolls his eyes. “Yeah. But I don’t know if I want to go pro.” He tells her, giving her the payment.

”Good luck, Akaashi! Don’t trip on your scarf,” Keiji flips her off and she just laughs.

He wasn’t looking at where he was going and he bumps into someone, sending him to the wet floor. He grimaces at how cold his ass feels and he’s about to send whoever knocked him over a scalding glare when he sees golden eyes and grey hair streaked with black.

”Bokuto-san?”

”Akaashi? Oh no! I’m sorry!” Bokuto offers his hand and pulls him up. “Your pants are all wet now.”

Keiji’s a bit taken back at how upset Bokuto sounds so he tries to wave it off no matter how uncomfortable he feels. “It’s okay. I mean, I fall a lot when I skate so this was bound to happen anyways,” he lies. “Don’t feel so bad.”

”Don’t lie,” Bokuto looks down and Keiji has the image of a sad owl pop in his head. “Look, I’ll buy you new pants or something. I feel bad.”

Keiji starts to protest but the older man shakes his head. “It’s okay, Akaashi-kun. Want to go out and get those now or would you rather skate now?”

As if prompting him to get out of the cold place, a breeze hits Keiji and he shivers. “Fine. But just buy me hot chocolate- I have a spare pair of pants in my bag,” Keiji informs him. “I really do fall a lot when I skate.”

At that, a smile breaks out the gloomy face of Bokuto which sends his heart into a frenzy. “Oh. Uhh, okay!” He stares at him for a moment, eyes wide and full of light unlike a few moments ago. Then he looks away, cheeks turning a shade redder than before. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

Before Keiji can say anything else, Bokuto leaves him and he’s left alone. Quickly, he makes his way to a washroom and changes pants in one of the stalls. When he goes out, he asks Maria to set his ticket aside so he can come back later or another day and she agrees easily as she gives him a wink.

”Use protection kid!” She yells after him.

”I am the young age of innocence!” The last thing he hears is Maria cackling like the witch she actually is.

Bokuto is leaning on the wall of the building when he sees him, a golden scarf wrapped around his neck that covers his nose as well. The remaining portion of his face that’s still visible is flushed red and his hands are stuffed into the pockets of his coat.

”You get cold easily?” Keiji asks as he approaches Bokuto.

Bokuto lifts his head and his eyes crinkle, like he’s smiling underneath his scarf. “Not really. I just like being warm better than feeling cold,” he says. “There’s a cafe nearby we could go to. Shall we?”

They fall into a steady pace, silence engulfing them. Keiji lets Bokuto lead the way, trusting the taller man to take him to a comfortable and warm place. And he’s right to do so because they enter this homey cafe that’s surrounded by plants and flowers, the delicious smell of coffee and food wafting from the kitchen. They take a table beside a window that’s set away from people.

”You like cinnamon with your hot chocolate?” Bokuto asks, getting his wallet from his bag.

”It doesn’t hurt to try,” Keiji tells him, getting a blinding smile in return. Bokuto leaves him to his thoughts and he slumps over the table, feeling his cheeks heat up.

_Holy shit, I like him. I am_ so _gay for him. I want to know more about him and hold his hand and holy fuck. This is only my second time talking to him! Keiji, calm down. He probably has a girlfriend or a boyfriend or something. He can’t be interested in me._ Keiji sighs. _I’m not interesting or handsome or anything worth his time._

“Hey, Akaashi-kun?” Keiji lifts his head up to see Bokuto holding a tray of food and drinks above him. “Mind moving?”

The blush on Keiji’s cheeks only deepens as he sits up straight. “Sorry. I’m just tired,” he says.

”It’s okay! I’m not really a traditional kind of guy. You can drop the ‘-san’ if you want,” he tells him.

”I don’t feel comfortable with that. But if you want, you can just call me ‘Akaashi’,” Keiji says.

”You sure?” Of course, Keiji can’t say no to those wide golden eyes.

”Nice! Thanks, Akaashi!” Bokuto hands him his drink and offers him another smile that makes Keiji’s thoughts incoherent for the next minute.

Bokuto got them both a chocolate muffin because apparently, “you can’t go wrong with chocolate muffins!” Keiji enjoys the hot drink heating up his body and almost falls into a lethargic state of mind.

“I don’t mean to be rude but you used to skate right? Why’d you stop?” Bokuto asks then immediately turns red. “Sorry! That was really rude even if I said I don’t mean to be rude!”

Keiji giggles and tells him it’s okay. “I quit because my parents split up over it. Well, because of something I told them,” he says. “It’s been three years so it’s fine now.”

”Oh. I can relate a bit. I told my mom that I’m bisexual and she thought it was because I skate so I had to stop for a year. But she’s okay with it now so I returned,” Bokuto says.

Keiji blinks. Again, he wasn’t expecting such an honest story from someone he’s not that close with.

_Yet_. His mind supplies.

“Oh. Almost the same thing then. I told them I’m gay and my mom thought it’s because of skating. My dad supports me but my mom didn’t and it brought up a lot of fights and well,” Keiji shrugs. “They opted to separate. But I felt bad about it so I stopped but... I missed it.”

”Well, I’m glad you decided to come back. I kinda stayed to watch you skate- not in a stalker way of course! I just thought you must be a really graceful skater and I was right because the way you moved,” Bokuto’s eyes sparkle. “Just _wow_.”

Keiji’s heart accelerates and he can fee his stomach somersault while his face turns red. “Thanks,” he manages to say.

”You’re welcome!” And Bokuto returns to eating his muffin like he didn’t just compliment him and made him physically show his embarrassment because of his crush on him.

They turn their conversation to other things like high school and college, movies, books, skaters they admire (and crush on) and a variety of other topics. When they’re done with their food, they stack their plates and put away their cups then leave the cafe.

”That was nice. I’ll see you around?” Keiji asks, smiling at the older man.

Bokuto seems to freeze for a millisecond before smiling back. “Yeah! Can I have your number?” He asks.

Keiji takes his phone out from his pocket and hands it over to Bokuto who takes it eagerly. It only takes a minute before he has his phone back.

”Good luck, Akaashi! I’ll see you around!” Bokuto waves his hand and runs off to the direction he’s headed.

Keiji looks down at his phone and opens his contacts list. When he sees the newest added contact, he laughs and sends a message.

_**To: I Think You’re Cute Wanna Go Out?** _

_Yes._


End file.
